Chris Witwer, Author at Wallyhood

Woodlawn Santa Decking the Halls

Chris Witwer December 2, 2011 11 Comments

I love this time of year for many reasons, one of which is my annual phone chat with Woodlawn Santa (aka Sharon Ehrig), who usually leads the conversation with a rousing “Ho ho ho!” This year, she had something else to add: “Christmas is going up!”

This is great news. Even better, Santa has a clean bill of heath this year.

You may recall that last year Santa battled breast cancer and was unable to put up her usual Christmas lights and wave at us from her front porch. But Santa is back, albeit a bit slower than in years …

Hannah’s Olives

Chris Witwer November 30, 2011 Comments are off

Locavores take note! Wallingford neighbor Rina Nicholson announces this year’s homemade Middle-Eastern-style olive sale just in time for your holiday shopping. While the olives themselves are shipped up (fresh) from California, the curing happens right here in Wallingford. Some ingredients, such as garlic and chile peppers used to cure the olives, are grown in Rina’s Wallingford yard. Grape leaves are come from a neighbor’s garden as well.

Details of the sale:

Who: Hannah’s Olives by Rina Nicholson What: Home Cured Olives sale + authentic homemade Middle Eastern foods like Pomegranate Vinegar, stuffed grape leaves (not Greek style), Yemenite hot paste,…

New tenants for 1441 North 34th

Chris Witwer November 29, 2011 1 Comment

On Sunday, I spotted a Bekins moving truck that was unloading file cabinets & rolling them into 1441 N. 34th Street, where the Institute for Systems Biology used to be across from Essential Baking. I talked to the movers and they had no idea who the new tenant is. I’m not finding any other information about possible new tenants online.

Hence this post.

Can anyone fill us in? Does anybody have any detailes?…

Christmas Ships at Gas Works

Chris Witwer November 25, 2011 Comments are off

The Christmas Ships and the Parade of Boats will serenade Wallingford from Gas Works Park this Thursday, December 1st from 8:20 – 8:40 pm. It always seems to last longer than that, though. In a good way.

From Argosy’s web site:

“The Argosy Christmas Ship™ festival is a holiday celebration that has been a Northwest tradition for 62 years… From our flotilla of ships to the crowds of people who gather onshore, this celebration is one of the gems of the holiday season.

Each night, through December 23rd, 2011 the Argosy Christmas Ship™ sails to different Puget Sound waterfront …

I Just Saw A Real Life UFO

Chris Witwer November 16, 2011 1 Comment

Tuesday night I walked out on my deck for some evening air just after 7pm. From that deck, which faces south from Lower Wallingford, I spotted an odd yellow light in the sky. Larger than a star, bigger than a planet.

Then I saw other lights. The lights, about eight of them, were in a rectangular shape. They gave the appearance of “hovering” over West Seattle and the Sound, maybe Queen Anne Hill as well. I called for my partner, Laura, to come quick and to bring her camera.

The rectangle floated up and northeast, in an arc.

Laura said, …

Metro disses Wallingford

Chris Witwer November 14, 2011 40 Comments

You may recall that Metro was supposed to have an “information table” at the QFC on 45th from 4-6pm Sunday. Reader Ju wrote to let us know that the event was, shall we say… unspectacular. Here’s what Ju had to say yesterday:

Hi Wallyhood,

According to http://metro.kingcounty.gov/have-a-say/calendar.html, KC Metro was going to have an “information table” at the Wallingford QFC today from 4-6pm with information about proposed changes to the bus system in 2012, including eliminating the route 26. By the time I got to QFC at 5 pm, there was no sign of Metro. Someone at QFC told me …

November Wallingford Community Kitchen

Chris Witwer November 14, 2011 Comments are off

It’s time for the November Wallingford Community Kitchen! There’s nothing better than the warmth of both kitchens and neighbors this time of year. What a combo. Which is why you want to go to there.

The Wallingford Community Kitchen Holiday Celebration is Friday, November 18th from 5:30pm to 9pm at the Wallingford COMMUNITY Senior Center (WCSC) at the Good Shepherd Center, 4649 Sunnyside Ave N, Room 140. Cooking starts at 5:30pm; dinner served around 8pm. This is a no-fee event, however, please RSVP for head-count purposes.

The holiday celebration will include a communal soup, and Emma Notkin will assist in …

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